audio intercoms
Broadcast intercom systems have something of
an image problem. They have a vital role to
play but are, in the minds of some, a glorified
phone system. But there is a growing need to
connect people and departments over long
distances thanks to the development of big
broadcast centres and the coverage of massive
live events. Kevin Hilton reports.
Hello...can you hear me?
B
ecause of the demand to developers at Trilogy Communications the tools," he said. "And we want to
connect people working doubtless find wryly amusing because make our IP the best connection and
on a production over long when it launched an IP-based system more robust than anything that has
distances the role in 2001 very few people outside the been seen before."
intercom plays has company thought it would be To achieve this ambition Clear-Com
become better understood
The creation
successful. last year bought the technology assets
and valued. Even more so now that
of huge
Today the Mercury product range is of Canadian IP developer Talkdynamics
new technologies and techniques firmly established, so Trilogy's Technologies, which it had beenintercom
have been developed to cope with broadcast division general manager working with since 2004.
networks, as
the new demands of both large-scale Barry Spencer says the company feels Talkdynamics supplied its IV-Core
seen at the
broadcasting and multi-platform justified in following this direction: products for integration into Clear-
transmission. The creation of huge
Olympics,
"Other companies said IP couldn't be Com's VoICE intercom range - which
intercom networks, as seen at the
has been
used because of the delay introduced Danilowicz says users had been
Olympics, has been made possible made by IT technology but now they're employing as a bridge between other
largely due to wireless and digital coming on board with their own systems - but now the aim was to
possible
technologies, usually in combination. offerings. It's been a progression from move beyond that and create a
largely due
But these are now being challenged the days when people used phone ‘native IP architecture’ with no need
to wireless
by a technology imported from the lines as the basis of an intercom and for intermediary boxes.
telecom market, voice over internet
and digital
then moved on to four-wire and then The EBU recognised the growing
protocol (VoIP). Because of its roots
technologies.
ISDN came along in the 1990s. Now use of IP in broadcasting last year by
there were initial doubts over the that has been overtaken by IP. Where setting out guidelines for it, including
security and reliability of VoIP for we're seeing major growth is in the minimum requirements to guarantee
broadcast intercom but today it is requirement for broadcasters and interoperability between equipment
becoming regarded as the core other organisations to communicate used in VoIP networks carrying
technology on which bigger and between sites that are hundreds of contribution quality audio. It also
bigger systems can be built. Many of miles apart." specified the Session Initiation Protocol
the major manufacturers now offer
The Beijing TV
An example of this during the 2008 (SIP) as the mandatory signalling
some form of VoIP, something
studio complex.
Olympics was the link provided by method for bi-directional links.
Clear-Com between the International Developed by the IETF (Internet
Broadcast Centre in Beijing and Engineering Task Force) and published
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV's as RFC 3261, SIP is an Internet
existing and new broadcast centres, protocol for live communications used
which was based on optical fibre with in establishing and ending voice or
a redundant E1 and VoIP connection. video calls.
Matt Danilowicz, managing director of Barry Spencer says SIP provides an
Clear-Com, says the holy grail for international standard for IP-based
1
4
.
intercom manufacturers is to have a audio systems for the first time and
battery of products based on different sees the opportunities in connecting
technologies available to its customers intercoms to IP phones. Riedel
so they can select the most Communications is now moving into
appropriate for their needs. "The best VoIP and also views SIP as an
system will use a combination of all important step towards global
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12 l ibe l march/april 2009 l www.ibeweb.com
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